Naruto: The Nara Retelling
by Anbu Fox
Summary: In which Kakashi isn't the worst teacher in the world, and the characters we all love live differently. Follow the retelling of Naruto through Yukimura Nara, Shikamura Nara's twin. Rated M for later chapters. Crossed posted with A03 account.
1. The Bonds That Tie

Naruto: The Retelling

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In which Kakashi isn't the worst teacher in the world, and the characters we all love live differently. Follow the retelling of Naruto through Yukimura Nara, Shikamura Nara's twin.

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Chapter 1: The Bonds That Tie

Shikamura paced up and down the hallway.

Making sure to avoid the double doors on his right because he couldn't stand the room on the other side. He wasn't the only one; Shibata was leaning against wall and so were a few dozen other people milling around. Shibata, his uncle, had agreed to watch over him while his mother waited inside the room for any news on his twin. On any other day Shikamura would have said "_How troublesome."_

He didn't tonight.

The walls of the hospital conference room were built to withstand earthquakes and other natural disasters, not the wails or screams that erupted when the occasional shinobi updated the list of survivors and deceased. Shikamura could feel his heart constrict every time the list updated, when his uncle would disappear only to come back shaking his head.

This was the reason why he left the room; the survivor list was hardly touched in the four hours since the list had been updated seven times. The wails were unbearable and just the deceased side was getting longer and longer.

Shikamura was quite proud to say that at 7-years old, he was doing a good job at not getting easily upset and so what if he needed to hide his face in his uncle's leg after each update was the same as the last, that not a single word had come through on if Yukimura Nara was found. He just wanted to know if his sister was okay.

Reports were scattered, rumors were abundant and changing with gossip as more and more people interacted and talked to each other. Shikamura wasn't really sure what was going on. But one common factor everyone agreed on was this:

An attack had occurred at the Uchiha compound.

Six hours ago Yukimura had been dropped off at Nemuri Uchiha's house.

It was going to the best sleepover ever.

Nemuri had invited her cousins and some of her academy friends. At first Ino Yamanaka, Sakura Haruno and Yuki had hung closely together, not sure how to interact act with Nemuri's large group of cousins who had the advantage of familiarity and size.

Nail polish had soon ended that and the girls found themselves making new friends and enjoying the other planned activities.

It was going to the best sleepover ever.

Until the explosions started.

The eldest girls had been quick to react; they herded Yukimura, Ino, Sakura, Nemuri and two other cousins outside the house and towards a secret entrance for a bunker. The girls huddled together in the center of the room, surrounding them in a protective formation while two girls planned to venture outside the shelter to investigate.

The girls had only made it two steps before the door was slammed open and their bodies were ripped apart.

Yukimura would never be certain what happened. It was too traumatizing, too raw and so many things happened.

Heat from a bomb explosion touched her face.

Screams erupted.

Someone had grabbed her around the stomach and she was flying.

Flying over rooftops.

Metal clashed with metal.

Another explosion and she was falling through the sky.

Shikaku Nara leaned over the table that held all the blueprints of the Uchiha compound. Anbu had reported some kind of barrier that was preventing them from entering, but it wouldn't last forever. It was getting weaker through constant attacks; many elite jonin and Anbu weren't pulling any punches and when it fell dozens of squads were ready to go.

_But is this going to make a difference?_

Three hours after the attacks were initially reported, silence had befallen the area trapped within the barrier. Shinobi who had been trapped within were communicating with hand signs to give reports on the inside but their number had dwindled as more and more left to fight the intruder deep in the compound.

An Anbu squad was sent to retrieve the Hokage from his trade deal with a newly established village. The Konoha council had the village on lock down and were expecting a report from him and other the branches soon.

"_The barrier has been taken down, squads 1 thru 4 are being sent in now. Medical teams are waiting for the first area to be cleared before entering."_

"Acknowledge."

The radio message was meet with a chorus of cheers in the mission room. It was the best news of the night and Shikaku was glad to finally let his mind drift away from mission related tactics.

His daughter was somewhere in the northern section of the compound. Far from the center but close enough to the furthest wall at the edge of compound that it would be a few hours before any of the squads could advance to the area. Knowing the Uchiha, those old enough would have been drilled to take anyone chunin status and below, along with civilians towards evacuation shelters. Shikaku had been quick to spot one close to the house Yukimura would have been spending the night at.

Anbu captain Wolf had requested the immediate assistance of all teams after they had entered and Shikaku had given his approval as jonin commander. Several hours passed before restlessness developed. What was taking the first response team so long to report? Ultimately, it was a pale-faced Iruka Umino who delivered the news that the inhabitants within Uchiha compound had been utterly slaughtered.

Survivors were far and few in between, many under some kind of genjutsu that left its victims chakra exhausted, unable to walk and disoriented. Support teams had been quick to secure the complex, and under the council's order, only jonin status and above were to help with anything to do with tonight's mission. The leaders of the Inuzuka, Aburame, and Hyuga had been contacted and those clansmen able would be arriving shortly to quickly expedite the process along. Konoha's humidity at night will only spread disease and endanger those trapped in the genjutsu.

_Holy fucking shit._

This—This was _not_ what Shikaku had been expecting to hear.

_This is… this is a nightmare._

Shikaku only allowed himself one uneasy frustrated sigh. Until otherwise told, he was going to believe his daughter was alive. He had people counting on him for team deployments and his mind was already going through the list of people he needed to wake at this late hour in addition to figuring out where he needed to place the clan members.

He needed to think about anything other then the image of his daughter's back when he dropped her off for a sleepover.

When Yukimura woke up in a hospital bed weak, exhausted and her arm in a cast, she had no idea what was going on.

People of all shapes and sizes kept bombarding her with questions about if she remembered what happened at the Uchiha compound. Did she remember breaking her arm? What was she doing so close to the center of the Uchiha compound? On and on the questions went and Yuki just wanted them all to go away.

No, she didn't remember what happened.

_But she did want her mom and dad._

She didn't know how she broke her arm.

_She wanted to go home._

No, She didn't have any effects from the genjutsu.

_And she didn't understand why she couldn't leave._

And that was the way things progressed all day. She wasn't allowed to leave her hospital room. A guard stood outside and no matter how much she tried to stir any kind of conversation, he would not reply.

It was during her dinner did things start to look up.

"Yukimura-chan?"

It wasn't the man she wanted to see, her disappointed sigh had surprised her but Yuki did her best to give Ino's dad her best smile. _I just want to go home, _thought the seven-year-old as she stabbed her food and watched Inoichi Yamanaka take a seat next to her bed.

"I'm sorry it's taken this long, it's been a nightmare trying to get all of your friends and anyone your age's paperwork processed so you can go home. If it helps, Ino hasn't been home since this all started either."

_Which was four days ago._

To say that Yukimura was unhappy was an understatement. Inoichi had been the primary person that asked her questions about that night, he guided her through her official statement, always encouraging and patient when she stumbled on her oral report while another shinobi had written her statement down.

Ino's Dad had also been the one to tell her what happened the night of the sleepover.

Only those who had no relation to the clan had been left alive and fellow classmate Sasuke Uchiha was now the sole survivor of the Uchiha clan. It was the morning of the second day and Yuki had spent it sobbing, mourning the loss of Nemuri, crying herself to sleep and talking with a trauma specialist.

"I'm here to say that you are now cleared and I'm going to escort you to the conference room to meet your family."

Yuki had scrabbled off the bed, food tray long forgotten and nearly slammed into the door when the words she had been waiting days to hear were finally spoken. Inoichi looked amused, but Yukimura honestly didn't care because she was finally going home!

"Let's _go!"_

Shikamura knocks her to the ground before she sees him.

There are tears, laughter and even her mother's usual scolding is half hearted as their father scoops the both of them off the ground and hugs tightly.

Things had changed since the hospital.

Yukimura had been foolish to think everything would still be the same. Nothing could have prepared her of the realization that the massacre really happened then when she noticed the number of students and teachers missing.

_No, not missing. Dead._

The Hokage himself had spent a day at the school while Yukimura was in the hospital, personally addressing the killings. All of her classmates had taken a crash course on traumatic events; it was rough, having been quickly put together at the last minute. However, veteran shinobi volunteers helped smooth out any edges when the teachers ran into problems.

Students knew not to ask about that night.

Even with all this, it didn't stop the stares or whispers from her classmate.

What happened was horrible but Yukimura didn't remember anything. Ino, Sakura and herself had even met up to try and figure out what happened. Nights had been wasted trying to figure out anything that occurred after Nemuri had brought out the nail polish, but she couldn't and neither could any of the girls. After a month of trying, Yuki stopped all efforts when Sasuke was finally allowed to come back to school.

Everyone stopped asking about that night when he came back.

The pessimistic and gloomy attitude was a complete turn around from the cheerful and charismatic person everyone knew.

"Mom, can I have an extra bento?"

Yukimura dips her head a little and thinks of the time Shikamura had broken her favorite doll. She knows it's a long shot, but Yukimura isn't ashamed of bringing out the water works. She takes a small sip of her orange juice to hide her smile at the performance.

"Oh, is it for someone you like?"

Yuki chokes on her drink and pounds on her chest to clear the air. Her mother's grin lifts higher, eyes glowing with amusement. Shikamura merely gives Yuki a glance before continuing on with his breakfast.

"Troublesome," he murmurs.

_Wow. Thanks for the help Shika._

Immediately, Yuki splutters out something like denial in the voice that's higher in pitch and vainly tries to deal the deathblow to whatever theory her mother is currently fabricating in her head.

A single raised eyebrow and a smirk is her mother's response.

When the bell rang to signal lunch at the academy, Yukimura stops Kiba Inuzuka and Choji Akimichi from sitting down.

"There's a new spot I want to try!"

The boys grumble but they follow her and Shikamura away from their usual spot near the playground to a tree next to the stonewall surrounding the academy. They pick up Naruto Uzumaki midway to their destination and listen to his retelling of a funny incident that occurred last night at the orphanage.

When they reach the giant cherry bloom tree, Yuki places her extra bento near the lone figure already there.

"My mom had some extra food leftovers and said I should give it to anyone who might've forgotten one. Our group's gonna be right over there if you want to join us."

Sasuke doesn't acknowledge anything she said. He keeps his knees tucked in and stares off at the distance, only the barest movements of his face and tightening of his fingers let's Yukimura know he heard her.

She walks back to her group and aside from the new location; it's business as usual for the seven-year olds as the group discusses whether to play _ninjas vs. samurais_ or _tag_; Shikamura votes for cloud watching but everyone ignores him.

For the all of the stigma that surrounds her family, Yuki isn't sure how the Nara clan ended up getting labeled laid back and easygoing. She has an inkling it's due to her father's actions as head of the entire Nara clan. Although she and her fraternal twin don't break the mold, they don't exactly slack off at home. As potential heirs to become leaders for the Nara clan, Shikaku hadn't let their time before the academy gone just to play time.

Of all the lessons she had to endure, the one area that had peaked Yuki's interest was social interactions. While her brother was an untapped intellectual prodigy, and Shikamura preferred to keep it that way—because anything that inferred with cloud watching wasn't worth it—, her parents secretly push him through various mental training exercises disguised as games. It never bothered Yuki to know that Shikamura was smarter then her. Not when Yukimura can read people like an open book.

She had always thought it was normal, being able to tell what a person could be thinking and how they felt by just their stance, facial expressions and what ever clues their current outfit held.

"That man is lying."

A beggar had caught Yukimura's attention and his actions had caused her to pause in an evening walk with her father. Her father hadn't understood at first but he was patient in getting her attention back and asking the right questions to figure out what caused his five-year old to stop in the middle of the street.

She explained how the beggar's outfit looked prefect at a glance. Expect the man's hair lacked the greasy appearance as the other homeless people in the area, how his hands and feet seemed well cared for in contrast to the aging appearance of his sandals and finger gloves, and the way his face would change when people would give him change.

She saw how his face would appear kind and hopeful and shift towards malicious and deceit. Her father had been impressed enough to confront the man and confirm what Yukimura had said. Which lead to her own specialized training whenever they went out in public for their evening walks around the Nara compound.

On the first day Sasuke came back to school, her mind had been hit with sensory overload by just looking at him. He was a walking contradiction, everything he said was the opposite of what he really wanted. His sharp words pushed people away but she noticed the way his mouth tugged further downwards when no one challenged him.

How he isolated himself during lunch and break but kept shifting his head to state at the playground when he thought no one was watching. After a week of paying close attention to Sasuke, it was Shikamura who prompted her into action.

"So are we going to watch clouds today or are we going to do something about what you're reading from Sasuke?"

Yukimura knew brother like the back of her hand and for Shikamura to push her to do something meant she was letting this affect her more then usual.

"Yeah," She said tentatively. " I need your help if this will work but here's my idea…"

And that was how they spend the rest of their afternoon. Pouring over Shikamura's pamphlets that detailed how to deal with survivors of traumatic events; coming up with ideas and plans. Yuki was glad that Shika had attempted some kind of note taking. He rarely did but she's certain it was only because she was in the hospital and no one knew how much she had seen the night of the murders.

As much as Yuki wanted to go with the highly imaginative plan that involved sealing scrolls, ramen and the Nara family forest; Shikamura had convinced her to go with a much simpler plan. Sasuke pushed people away but he didn't mind people who kept attempting to talk to him, which were only teachers at this point.

So the twins both agreed that if they tried to get him involved with whatever their group of schoolmates did, maybe Sasuke would start to loosen up. It hadn't escaped anyone's notice that the Uchiha hardly brought his lunch anymore and it was the prefect starting point.

It takes two months, dozens of wasted bentos, and a full explanation to both their parents before Sasuke sits down with the group to eat his bento. Naruto and Kiba slightly pause in their argument about the latest Unlucky Princess movie, giving Sasuke a shocked face before going back to their squabble when Choji suggests the princess should just give up her title.

Shikuka had made it a point to get across that their classmate wasn't a puzzle to be solved. Sasuke was a human and what they were really doing at heart was kind but they had to be slow about it.

He doesn't always sit with them but by the time the spring semester is nearing its end Sasuke has integrated himself in the group.

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**Author's Note:**

Thanks for reading y'all!

We're gonna spend a little bit more time more at the academy before we hit the start of the manga. Some heavy hitters make an appearance and everyone's favorite teacher get's the ball rolling.


	2. For Those Close To Us

Naruto: The Nara Retelling

Chapter 2: For Those Close To Us

"Congratulations on becoming a genin! It's the first step in a long—"

Her mind slips as she ignores Iruka-sensei's speech on what being a genin means, how the proud their village is and _blah, blah, blah_. Yukimura has nothing against Iruka, she actually rather likes the teacher. She just heard all of this from her Mother and Father two days ago when Shikamaru and her presented their headbands. That and a lot more clan responsibilities, which judging from the way Shikamaru looked especially annoyed, she isn't the only one to remember that conversation. _I'm not looking forward to going to a major clan meeting. It's so boring!_

Yukimura can feel her head nodding off until Ino jabs an arm into her ribcage. She give's Ino a stink eye but get's the point. Iruka tells the class team placements will be assigned a week from now, to give students time with their families, submit forms to officially be recognized as shinobi, take an official picture and whatever else needs to be done. It's a lot to take in and Yukimura is glad when Iruka passes out a sheet with all the information.

"So… What's the four man curse?" asks Naruto.

"It's suppose to be some kind of scary story for shinobi," said Choji, flipping the meat on the yakiniku grill. Some people from the class had wanted to celebrate for passing the exams and while Naruto had hopefully suggested Ichiraku, BBQ had won the majority vote. "My dad said a four person squad for genin's are considered bad luck."

"It's a lie, Choji," said Ino from the right side of the table. "My dad said it's to make the genin lose their confidence when they first get tested by their jonin sensei."

"Test, what are you talking about Ino?" said Kiba, pointing his chopstick at her. "We just passed our test."

Nine pairs of eyes locked on onto Ino's face.

"Yeah, what kind of test?" repeats Yukimura, that had definitely not been something her parents or Iruka covered. _Judging from the way everyone at the table is looking at her, no one else knew either, _thinks Yukimura._ What a drag, of course Dad would let Shika and I face this unprepared. Hinata doesn't look all too surprised. Maybe her dad told her?_

"I-I can't say anything else! I already broke my dad's promise that I wouldn't say anything." stuttered Ino, quickly stuffing her mouth with rice.

"Does anyone know anything else about this test?" asks Sakura, giving Ino a mild look of annoyance.

Everyone shakes their head or shrugs.

"But this still doesn't answer my question about the curse!" said Naruto, waving his hands around to bring back the topic. "I overheard two teachers saying how this year is going to be interesting cause there's a four man cursed team being created."

"Don't be so loud in public, moron," said Sasuke, taking a sip from a cup as he sat across from Naruto. "And I've actually heard of this, my uncles use to tell it to relatives who passed their exams to keep them up at night. I don't remember all the details but I know enough to tell the story."

Yukimura listens to Sasuke's tale as she chews on her meat, she had heard of it too. Until Naruto brought it up, she hadn't even thought of the story, surprising given that her mother loved telling stories passed down from generations like the four-man curse. The story starts off pretty simple, a group of brothers didn't want to be separated after the academy and jumped at the chance to become a four-person squad; but the boys had huge egos and one day it cost them dearly. During an escort mission, the boys hadn't listen to the warnings of the elder they were protecting and she was killed because of it. Depending on who you ask, the woman was a witch, demon, or something else all together. But one thing was certain; she placed a curse on all four-man squads to fail if they were genins.

"Was she really a ghost?" asked Naruto weakly, face pale.

"I doubt it," said Kiba.

"Naruto, don't think too hard about it. My mom told Shikamaru and I that story all the time. It's just an old wives tale. There's no way a highly skilled jonin would ever fall for that story," said Yukimura. "Besides, we better hurry with our lunch if you want help moving you and Sasuke out of the orphanage and into your new apartment."

…

…

"I refuse."

Hiruzen Sarutobi chuckles lightly in front of him, watches as the old man pulls out a chair, sits down and sighs, letting the silence settle as he takes in the man standing opposite of him in the room. The Third Hokage takes out his wooden pipe, taps it against the table in front, and lights it. He speaks as he puffs out a few clouds of smoke between sentences.

"I didn't think someone such as yourself believed in such rumors. You haven't even heard the names of the students."

Kakashi Hatake groans as he puts down a scroll he picked off the table. Whoever wrote it was a beginner in sealing and it showed_,_ _badly_. Kakashi has a feeling it's from a student on that team he might end up teaching, but there was no way in hell he was accepting this without a fight.

"The names won't change my stance and it's hard to ignore gossip when every team with four students all lose a member within a two years."

Hiruzen snorts as he pins down Kakashi with a glare.

"Is that the attitude you wish to impose on Naruto Uzumaki's team?"

_Of all the things for the Hokage to say._

Kakashi lets silence fill the air because there's nothing he can respond with. It seems too soon, like the world is getting smaller and smaller and _smaller. _He isn't afraid of the child. Not Sensei's son. _Never_ Minato and Kushina's child. He's gotten pass the guilt of not being there to guard Kushina during the birthing process. But that guilt, however small, is still there and Kakashi isn't sure if he's ready to take on Minato's son.

"Walk with me Kakashi, we're going to visit your student's homes."

Together with the Hokage, Kakashi encounters the overwhelmingly joyful personalities of Sakura's parents, visits the two-bedroom apartment that Naruto and Sasuke surprisingly share. How Sasuke, who keeps a meticulous clean appearance can put up with the tornado that is Naruto's room is a miracle. They enjoy an actual conversation with Yukimura's mother, Yoshino, when they visit his final students' home.

Gravel crunched under Kakashi's shoe as he walked along a dirt path and he wondered how long the Hokage was going to continue leading him away from the village. Hiruzen had been remarkably silent after their visit to the Nara compound. _These students are all so… different from one another, _Kakashi thought casually. _It'll be a miracle if they can work together as a team. _He hadn't noticed when the Hokage stopped walking but he did know the area they stood in front of_, _the memorial stone that marks where the Uchiha compound once stood.

"What happened here on that night many years ago was a tragedy." Said the Hokage, looking at Kakashi by the corner of his eye. "Regardless, you are the only Leaf Shinobi who possesses a Sharingan now. We don't know yet if Sasuke will be able to activate his but if he does, you must be there for him."

"I will." Says Kakashi as firmly as he can. If this team can pass his test and ignore the rumors about the 'cursed four man' team, then _yes. _History will never be repeated. Not under his watch. Kakashi will do everything in his power to make sure this team understands true teamwork and treasure the friendships they create with one another.

"Why?"

"Why, What?"

"Why would you put me in charge of those four?"

A burst of laughter causes Kakashi to tear his gaze from the open meadow.

"Well, there's a hopeless fool, a skilled protégé, a bleeding heart and a clever kunoichi," says Hiruzen, pausing with a sly grin on his face. "I'd say it's almost like Minato's old team."

He hadn't failed to notice. Hadn't wanted to see beyond the faces of his students. Kakashi had seen how painfully similar Naruto was to Obito Uchiha, when he had accompanied Maito Gai to check out a student called Rock Lee, during their training sessions. Had felt a stab in his heart when he looked over team seven's personality profiles and ninja portfolio. To see it was one thing, but to have it _confirmed_ by the Hokage was another.

"S-so you chose me on purpose?" asked Kakashi, shocked. Favoritism from the Hokage was never something he would have expected from Hiruzen. The man was fair, just and many under the Third Hokage's command knew he always listened to his people. Never letting his personal opinion affect a decision no matter the situation.

"Listen Kakashi, I am the Hokage," Hiruzen hissed, as if hearing his thoughts. "I would never base my personnel decisions on personal preference! It's all about the right man for the right job… I carefully consider each of these assignments. Separately from what the teachers at the Academy believe."

Kakashi nodded uneasily. The wording wasn't going to fool him. He should have expected this. Should have known this would happen, especially when Minato-sensei had been under Jiraiya's guidance, who before him had been under Hiruzen.

"These are times when a squad's composition greatly affects shinobi and their actions, and subsequently, their success rate. It is the duty of those who govern to maintain special teams that posses a variety of skills. For example, Gai's team that was formed last year. It certainly doesn't have the kind of balance the instructors at the Academy recommend. It's a squad that specializes largely in taijutsu."

All of the jonin teachers of that year had seen his students and knew. How could Maito teach a group of students for training in the one area he couldn't preform? No one had been more relieved then Kakashi, secretly at least, to know his friend had been assigned a group who could inherit Maito's talent in taijutsu.

"This year, they have really come into their own. I also intend to organize special military squads that utilize secret Ninjutsu."

"From that perspective," Kakashi said, shifting his stance. "Naruto is the Jinchuriki of the Nine Tails and Sasuke has the potential to activate the Sharingan."

"As I mentioned earlier," the Third Hokage repeated. "You are the only one who can advise Sasuke with his Sharingan."

"I understand that those two are special, but what about the girls? Sakura and Yukimura?

Sakura doesn't come from a shinobi family and while Yukimura does, the Nara child is better suited under Asuma to handle her specialty then I would. She has a twin, it's not unusual for siblings to be placed on teams together."

"Well, as for Sakura, I believe she has the potential to be a good Kunoichi. Right now she's average, however…Talent attracts people, men notice women and rivalry matures both… so they say." said the Hokage with humor, but it falters as he talks. "Yukimura, however, is another story."

"How so?"

Silence descended upon them as the Hokage took his time to respond.

"What I am about to tell has only known by three people; myself, Inoichi Yamanaka, Ibiki Morino and now you." Hiruzen said his voice serious. Kakashi felt his discomfort return. He had been there the night of the massacre, had been apart of the back-up Anbu squad that searched the compound that night. "There is no easy way to say this. But as Yukimara's sensei you need to know that on the night of the Uchiha massacre, Yukimura killed over a hundred men, woman and children."

"You can't be serious." Kakashi asked, his mouth dropping open. "She must have been only seven years old! How—!"

"I don't regret hiding this piece of information," The Hokage said in steel tone, his face looking much older and worn out. "But there are a few facts you need to know to understand Yukimura."

Kakashi didn't know what to say. He picked up on the way Hiruzen's voice was filled with regret. He felt as if he had dumped into an ice-cold river. Kakashi had seen plenty of villages use younger children for their own assassination units. But he had never heard of someone like Yukimura. Shikaku wasn't the kind of man to train his own to become killers and Yoshino had a respectable career as a chunin. Never an once of violent history in the field.

"Officially, Itachi Uchiha killed his clan. But only the Hokage and the people I just mentioned know the whole story. Video surveillance installed at the compound since the day of the Nine-Tails attack picked up footage of Itachi using his Sharingan to force a group of fellow clan members into helping him. Among that group was Chion Uchiha."

"No," Kakashi said slowly. Somehow he felt sicker then before. There were few things that disgusted Kakashi during his long tenure with Konoha's Anbu organization. How Chion Uchiha was able to use his Sharingan to force children in other villages to act as puppets for assassinations was a mystery Kakashi could never figure out. His team had spent five months tracking the man before he slipped.

The victims had revealed a chilling fact during interrogation. They always remembered the killings. Chion had perfected his technique to a point where the children thought it had been _their idea_ instead of being planted there. Kakashi had let it happen two more times to gather enough information to present to the head of the Uchiha Clan and the Hokage. Some how the man had been tipped off and hide away deep within the Uchiha Compound. To this day, Kakashi has no idea how Chion, a man stripped of his name and citizenship, had managed to stay hidden for so long.

"Surveillance shows Yukimura fell under Chion's control when she used her ninjustu to fight Chion when the group she was with had unintentionally left her behind."

"She's remarkably well adjusted," Kakashi sighed, frowning up at the sky as he ran his hand through his hair. _What have I gotten myself into?_

"That's because her memories of that night have been sealed away," Hiruzen declared.

Kakashi looked down, a little unsure of his words. He should have expected that. To have a seven year old grow up living with that information would drive anyone into insanity.

"Due to seriousness of the event that occurred, Ibiki was given the task of talking to the children who were spared that night," said the Hokage. "She was starting to wake when he entered the room and she attacked him."

"Attacked?"

"She was still under the effects of the genjutsu and instantly used her family's ninjutsu to immobilize Ibiki. Under the Neck Binding Technique, Yukimura broke both their arms with the hospital bed and before she could cause any more damage, Ibiki was able to successfully overcome it and knock her out. When Inochi discovered what Chion had done, the seal was created. Yukimura was too young to be able to properly wipe her memories without damaging her mind. Instead Inoichi and Ibiki devised a way to hide the truth by creating a seal that kept a majority of that night and the hospital incident at bay from the girl."

Kakashi was stunned.

"I'm sure you're not oblivious to how the village treat's Naruto," the Hokage said. "I can only imagine how Yukimura would be treated if people discovered the true horrors of the Sharingan. Therefore this information was hidden in order to protect Yukimura as well as stop anything from happening to young Sasuke. "

"Why tell me all of this, Hokage-sama?"

"Because one day her seal will break," replied Hiruzen.

"Hokage-sama…" Kakashi whispered, stopping and taking a deep breath. The Hokage simply stared, cutting him off before any words were said. Which was for the better because Kakashi felt that today was the day of unwanted facts. He should have known this four-man curse was going to affect him in a way. Seeing his old team had been one thing, but realizing his team consisted of a Jinchuriki, a lone survivor, a killer and a bookworm, Kakashi couldn't fathom how he was chosen as their teacher.

"Kakashi, I meant it when I said I carefully consider each of these assignments. You are best the choice for these students. No one will push Naruto harder then you, you know how to whip people like Sakura into soldiers and I have faith that no else is better suited to guide Yukimura and Sasuke through their pain towards a brighter future. Only those who served in Anbu, who have seen such darkness, can help guide those two through this. You, Kakashi, above all people should know this. Neither family nor friends would ever be able to truly relate and help them. I fear they will only make things worse. I have faith you can accomplish the task set before you."

This was definitely more then he ever bargained for when he got assigned to become a teacher. But didn't he come with extra baggage himself as a child when Minato had been assigned to the original team seven?

"How does her seal work?"

…

…

Author's Note:

I _had_ planned on spending more time at the academy but my writing took off in a different direction and I had to make some changes. The conversation between Kakashi and the Hokage were taken from the latest season of Naruto on Hulu, which you can watch for free, and I expanded upon and played around with the words to add in Yukimura.

Yakumo Kurama and the Fourth Hokage have shown that it is possible to seal a memory that stretches over long periods of time. Thanks so much for reading and leave a review if you have the time!


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